Upstate Art Weekend
New Art at the Akin Free Library exhibition
on view in July in Pawling, New York
For three weekends in July, cu4ng-edge contemporary art will mingle with the historical vibe of
a Victorian-era athenaeum in Pawling, NY. The Akin Free Library, opened in 1908 on Quaker Hill
in the town of Pawling, New York, was once the heart of a wealthy farming and resort
community. Now this massive stone building stands alone at a country crossroads on the ridge
that forms the border between New York and Connecticut. The building has a club-style
reading room, historical collections ranging from the 18th to the 20th century, and – surprisingly
– a natural history collection compiled by Olive Gunnison as a hobby. Artist Courtney Puckett
and art historian Karen Zukowski, the organizers of “New Art at the Akin Free Library,” both
Pawling residents, have invited artists in the greater Hudson and Harlem Valley regions whose
work resonates with and in some cases is specifically site-responsive to the Library. In the first
floor main reading room, Natalie Baxter’s whimsical fabric chairs will form a conversational
grouping with the formal upholstered furniture. On the second floor, where the collections of
the Pawling Historical Society are housed, over-scaled trompe l’oeil ceramic ropes by Ashley
Lyons will be shown near side-saddles used by ladies at the now-vanished Mizzentop hotel.
Some pieces will be created specifically for this exhibition – a video installation by Kristen Mills
will riff on some of Pawling’s more famous citizens, including broadcaster and adventurer Lowell
Thomas. The exhibition will be a part of Upstate Art Weekend July 18-20, a festival of over 150
visual arts organizations, including museums, galleries, private studios, and special installations
that are open to the public.
Twelve artists will show over 40 works of art throughout the three floors of the building. The
artists, all women, are: Terry Ariano; Natalie Baxter; Natalie Beall, Eve Biddle; Maria Levitsky;
Ashley Lyon; Amanda C. Mathis; Alison McNulty; Kristen Mills; Megan Pahmier; Courtney
Puckett and Mandolyn Wilson Rosen. Thanks go to the Akin Hall Association for housing this
exhibition and making the reception on July 13 a public event. Many of the works are for
sale, with a percentage of the proceeds going to the Akin Free Library.
“New Art at the Akin Free Library” will be during the regular operating hours of the Akin,
Saturdays and Sundays 1-4, with some supplemental times. The dates and hours are:
Saturday, July 12, 1-4 pm
Sunday July 13, 1-5 pm with a public reception 3-5 pm
Friday July 18, 1-4 pm
Saturday July 19, 1-4 pm
Sunday July 20, 1-4 pm
Saturday July 26, 1-4 pm
Sunday July 27, 1-4 pm
The Akin Free Library is located at 378 Old Quaker Hill Road, Pawling, NY. To learn more about
the exhibition, and each of the artists exhibiting in it, please visit our Instagram page at
@newart_akinfreelibrary.
WORKS IN THE EXHIBITION
Quilted chair sculptures by Natalie Baxter and the reading room of the Akin Free Library
“Waiting for You” by Amanda C Mathis and a spinning wheel and yarn winder, both from the
19th century
“Sea Lady” by Courtney Puckett and coral in the Olive Gunnison collection of natural history
Ceramic snakes by Eve Biddle and reptile specimens from the Olive Gunnison collection
